There are so many businesses starting up and trying to make in the online retail and eCommerce space. Many believe that to be successful you need a lot of money and a heavy advertising budget. This is not true! Though it is harder to be successful right from the start, we still think you can make it can happen. You need to be organized with the right resources and be sure you are prepared for what you are getting yourself into. In honor of National Start Your Own Business Month, we came up with the below recommendations for you to follow before you decide to take the plunge. In honor of National Start Your Own Business Month, we came up with the below recommendations for you to follow before you decide to take the plunge.
- Define your business. Find your niche. What will make you different to other and what type of customer are you reaching out to? Write this out in detail and do some research to determine your competition, your target audience, the product demand, and current trends.
- Have a properly built website with captivating visuals and sufficient product shots that give your customer the confidence to purchase online without having the product in their hand. Put careful thought into your site. Ask yourself, does this represent the product and brand I am building? Does the site give information about my niche? Does my product provide a solution to a problem and is it being addressed on my site? Adding engaging title, images, and videos are a minimum requirement. If you need to invest money in something, it is definitely on providing the right visual aids to define your business and present your products. After all, your website is the most important platform for generating income. If your site communicates the idea and products well, you can always add to it to improve your SEO.
- Test the product out in the market. Since you have already done your research, give some of the product away for free, allow for a free trial or set up a beta group so you can get some valuable insight. Build a survey and use the results to improve your product, get testimonials, ask for social shares, find out any issues and get it ready for launch.
At Ortery Technologies, we have seen many startups launch and become successful. Being prepared with a strong visual presence online is the main element we advise our customers to focus on. For all eCommerce, we know a professional product image or video is what sells it. You want to the online consumer to experience and feel they can trust what they see in order to purchase online. We help our customer achieve this effect with our various product photography solutions that range from professional still to interactive 3D product views with deep zoom, audio, hyperlinks and more.